Marketfair Barnes & Noble’s event on March 11th

On March 11th, Impact Chess held yet another exciting event to continue spreading the joy of chess: an entire day of chess fun at Barnes & Noble in Marketfair! Impact Chess hosted the event as a bookfair event. Whenever participants shopped at Barnes & Noble or its café (which had two limited-time chess items) and mentioned Impact Chess, a portion of the revenue would be donated to our organization. The schedule was as follows:

The day started off with the Founder of Princeton Chess Academy, renowned chess coach Andy Dong, demonstrating to students the intersectionality of chess and mathematics. It was a unique topic, and the kids were incredibly engaged!

Coach Andy Dong (center) teaching

Then, it was free play: new players were taught the rules of chess while experienced players of all skill levels mingled and competed against each other. It was a great opportunity for people of numerous backgrounds to meet each other and bond over the wonderful game of chess.

The latter half of the event was packed with fun activities arranged by Impact Chess: Eric Wu shared a presentation on the history and significance of chess. He noted the equality, tradition, and mental aspects that made chess so special, before unveiling Impact Chess’ “63 Benefits of Chess.”

Afterward, players participated in a quick tournament, which, albeit inadvertently, served as the perfect prelude for the final activity: a simultaneous “simul” exhibition hosted by Grandmaster Darwin Yang. He played 15 young opponents simultaneously. Although the participants were enthusiastic to win a prize by beating or drawing the formidable grandmaster, no one succeeded in besting Mr. Yang. A special mention is given to George, who arrived at a knight-and-pawn endgame, only down a single pawn.

Impact Chess’ Volunteers with Grandmaster Darwin Yang

All in all, nearly 100 participants and spectators participated in our day of chess. Most participants were around 1st through 6th grade, but the interest of some parents propelled them to join in as well. Everyone had smiles on their faces, and the impact of Impact Chess could truly be seen.

Written by Andrew Dai and Eric Wu, published by Cindy Zhou